The Mint Hill Times

Mint Hill will most likely get a new state senator in latest redistricting map

Jul 122011

Mint Hill will no longer be in State Senate District 35 according to the latest Republican-drawn redistricting map released today. Mint Hill’s new district will be 41 which runs mostly along I-485 from Matthews, to Mint Hill to north Mecklenburg County.

The map will still need a final vote—most likely in late July—and there could be a few more tweaks. But more than likely Mint Hill will have a new state senator in the next state-wide elections.

A public hearing video conference will be held July 18 at CPCC on the proposed changes.

July 12, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 9:33 pm Government, Raleigh No Responses »

Not much will change for Mint Hill in congressional redistricting

Jul 042011

Rep. Sue Myrick (Dist. 9) will still represent the Mint Hill area according to the GOP-drawn congressional redistricting maps for North Carolina. However, Myrick’s district will change slightly. Her district, which currently pulls from suburban Mecklenburg County, Union County and Gaston County, will add southern Iredell County and drop Gaston County. The change shouldn’t affect her chances of getting reelected.
Just north of Mint Hill, Rep. Larry Kissell, a Democrat whose congressional district includes parts of 10 counties including Stanly, Union and Carbarrus, will lose a large group of African Americans to Rep. Mel Watt’s 12th district. The result could spell trouble for Kissell. In 2008, 52 percent of District 8 voted for Barack Obama. With the new district, the number falls to 44 percent.

Meetings will be held across the state Thursday to give residents a chance to voice their opinions about the new redistricting map. In the Charlotte area, the meeting will be held at the UNC Charlotte J. Murrey Atkins Library, Room 143, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte. The meeting lasts from 3-9 pm.

July 4, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 11:51 am Around Town, Politics, Raleigh, Washington No Responses »

Bill Brawley says nothing illegal about GOP fundraiser

Jun 302011

As Republicans in North Carolina held a fundraiser in Raleigh yesterday, a crowd of demonstrators stood outside calling the event a “pay for play” dinner with lobbyists.
Rep. Bill Brawley, who serves the Mint Hill and Matthews area, told WTVD that Democrats held the same type of fundraisers when they were in power:

The only difference between this and what has happened for years is the Republicans are in the majority.

Brawley spoke with reporters before heading into the event. He told WRAL that he had never been protested before. “This is great,” he said.

Democrats will hold a similar fundraiser July 12.

June 30, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 2:53 pm Politics, Raleigh No Responses »

Tucker: design bill lacks ‘teeth’

Jun 092011

Sen. Tommy Tucker

A bill that would limit the guidelines municipalities can have in dictating the look of homes is now in committee in the state house. If passed, it could have repercussions for municipalities across the state.
Senate Bill 731, named the Zoning/Design and Aesthetic Controls bill, passed the senate on May 17 by a vote of 38-10. It was introduced by Mecklenburg County Senator Dan Clodfelter and seeks to “clarify when a municipality or a county may enact zoning ordinances related to design and aesthetic controls.”
The bill is now in committee in the state house awaiting a vote that will send it to the floor. Representatives will then vote again and send it back to the senate for the final vote.
State Senator Tommy Tucker (Dist. 35), who represents the Mint Hill area, said the version of the bill that came of the senate was softened and lacked the “teeth” it once had. He said that is why he voted for it.
“The paragraph that was limiting to municipalities was taken out,” he said. “This is a gut check for both entities—builders and municipalities.”
He said there has been very little response to the bill from the public or towns and acknowledged that towns don’t always know what’s happening in Raleigh.
Both Mint Hill and Matthews town leadership crafted a letter that voiced opposition to the bill. It will be sent to state legislators who represent the area. Continue reading »

June 9, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:48 pm Development, Matthews, Raleigh, Town Hall No Responses »

Tucker: ‘We have the resources to become energy independent’

May 092011

Tommy Tucker (R-35), who represents the Mint Hill area in the North Carolina Senate, released this video about an energy bill he is co-sponsoring with Bob Rucho and Harry Brown.

The bill, predictably called the Energy Jobs Act, will make off shore drilling for natural gas possible in the state, as well as other energy exploration.

May 9, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:54 pm Environment, Raleigh No Responses »

Lottery winner signs check over to mother-in-law

Apr 262011

If only all mothers-in-law could be so lucky. Last week, Paula Milwood, a store clerk from Gastonia, was excited to see that her son-in-law scratched off the top prize in the N.C. Education Lottery’s $200,000 Cash game just a day after her grandson was born. Moments later, she was shocked when he handed her the winning ticket, saying “You keep it.”

“He just handed it to me and said I deserved it,” Milwood said. “He told me that I would know what to do with it. I didn’t know what to say.” The ticket was purchased at the Kingsway on Kendrick Road in Gastonia, where Milwood works. She plans to use her winnings, worth $136,001, to purchase a home for her family and possibly season passes to Carowinds amusement park.

“I feel like a big weight has been lifted,” Milwood added. “This is fantastic.” As of Monday afternoon, three top prizes remain to be claimed in the $200,000 Cash game.

In other lottery news, Carolina Cash 5 players in the Charlotte area need to check their numbers. One ticket matched all five numbers (9 – 11 – 14 – 31 – 37) in the Thursday, April 21 drawing and is worth $773,609. The jackpot had rolled since the April 9 drawing. This is the highest top prize in the game since the June 4, 2010 drawing when two players from Mebane and Hillsborough split the $823,652 prize. The largest single-winner Carolina Cash 5 claim occurred in November, 2007 when a player from Greenville matched all five numbers and won $856,988.

April 26, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 3:02 pm Good deeds, Raleigh No Responses »

Tucker, other senators, seek change in state constitution

Mar 072011

Tommy Tucker, who represents the Mint Hill area in the North Carolina state senate, is partnering with Sens. Tom Apodaca of Henderson County and Pete Brunstetter of Forsyth County in an attempt to change the state constitution so that the governor would run with a lieutenant governor as a team. This is similar to the way the president and vice President run on one ticket. The bill would also limit legislature leadership to three consecutive two-terms.

March 7, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 1:49 pm Politics, Raleigh No Responses »

Goodall thanks former colleagues for passing charter school bill

Mar 012011

Former State Senator Eddie Goodall, who represented the Mint Hill area before he chose not to run again last year, had some kind words for his former colleagues last week when they passed Senate Bill 8. The legislation would lift the cap on the number of charter schools in the state. Goodall is now President of the North Carolina Alliance for Public Charter Schools. As a senator, he pushed tirelessly fought for lifting the cap on charters. Here’s his letter to the State Senate:

Honorable Senators,

The Alliance Board of Directors asked me to thank you all for your historic support of the education “little guys”, the public charter schools. Special thanks to the leadership of the sponsor, Sen. Stevens, as well as the Education Co-Chairs, Sens. Tillman, Preston, and Soucek. We are also proud of those of you speaking on the senate floor for SB 8 at the second reading Wednesday. Continue reading »

March 1, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:02 pm Raleigh, Schools 1 Response »

Welcome to Raleigh, Tommy Tucker

Feb 222011

State Senator Tommy Tucker (Dist 35), who represents the Mint Hill area in the N.C. Senate, took a drubbing from the folks at The Progressive Pulse, a liberal public policy organization. Tucker’s questions at a recent HHS Appropriations Subcommittee drew consternation from The Progressive Pulse because they “showed just how far he has to go to get up to speed.”

Today, he posed a series of questions and statements that showed just how far he has to go to get up to speed.

His first question, posed to HHS Secretary and former Republican legislator Lanier Cansler, was about how many “illegal aliens” the Department served.

Really, Senator? That’s your first big question about North Carolina’s safety net programs?

Tucker doesn’t have a lot of political experience, and will probably admit that he has a lot to learn. But asking how much the state invests in illegal, or undocumented, people in North Carolina is a perfectly reasonable question to ask. Yes, illegal immigration is mostly a federal issue, but Tucker is asking a question that the constituents who elected him want him to ask. He may not be up to speed the way the Progressive Pulse wants him to be, but the people in Union County and Mint Hill who he represents probably don’t care.

February 22, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:00 pm Raleigh No Responses »

Time is running out for $1 million lottery ticket sold in Stallings

Feb 042011

The chances of winning the Mega Millions is 1 in 175,711,536. According to the book “For all practical purposes: mathematical literacy in today’s world” by Joseph Malkevitch and Lawrence M. Lesser, winning the Mega Million jackpot is like guessing a particular piece of paper in a stack twice as high as Mt. Everest, or guessing a particular second in the span of 5.5 years.

Of course, the odds of winning are even worse if you lose the ticket. That’s what’s happened in Stallings in the past year. A $1 million prize ticket was purchased for the August 20, 2010 Mega Millions drawing at the Market Express located at 2800 Old Monroe Road in Stallings. (The NCEL calls this address “Matthews,” but it is actually in downtown Stallings next to the McDonalds.) However, no one came forward with the winning ticket and it expires on Wednesday, February 16.

The five white balls for that drawing were: 4 – 13 – 20 – 29 – 48

To claim the $1 million prize, the ticket must be presented at N.C. Education Lottery headquarters in Raleigh by 5 p.m. on February 16. Players have 180 days from the date of the drawing to claim their prize.

“We’re really hoping to award this prize,” said NCEL Executive Director Alice Garland. “Celebrating winners is one of the most fun things we do at the lottery and we hate to see prizes go unclaimed, especially ones of this magnitude.”

Ryan Kennemur, the NCEL’s Public Information Officer, will be on-site at the Market Express in Matthews from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. today to raise awareness about the missing ticket.
View Larger Map

February 4, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:23 pm Around Town, Raleigh No Responses »

Got a winning N.C. lottery ticket? Haven’t cashed it? Better hurry

Jan 282011

For those who just haven’t gotten around to claiming a lottery prize, better hurry. The N.C. Education Lottery deadline to make claims for 10 of its instant scratch-off games is Thursday, Feb. 3. In November, the NCEL officially announced the end of the 10 instant scratch-off games effective Nov. 5, 2010. Under NCEL policy, all instant game prizes must be claimed within 90 days of the announced end-of-game date. Continue reading »

January 28, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 1:45 pm Raleigh No Responses »

Mint Hill police chief: no independent lab needed for SBI

Jan 192011

Mint Hill Police Chief Tim Ledford, who is President of the North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police, was apart of a legislative panel that voted Tuesday on reforms to improve the state crime lab.

The lab came under scutiny last summer after a report showed that 200 cases during a 16 year period were improperly handled. Most of the cases were the result of misrepresented blood work.

The panel voted 9-7 to defeat a proposal by Rep. Mickey Michaux, D-Durham, to have the SBI lab director report directly to Attorney General Roy Cooper and not the new SBI Director, Greg McLeod.

The panel also voted to rename the SBI lab to the ”North Carolina State Crime Laboratory” so that it is not perceived as an arm of prosecutors and police.

Most of the recommendations will have to be approved by the state legislature.

“We don’t know what to expect from an independent lab,” said Ledford said to the Associated Press. “Director McLeod has assured us that oversight has been put in place for some of the problems that have occurred.”

January 19, 2011 Posted by Tim Long at 12:02 am Police, Raleigh 1 Response »

Civitas Poll: North Carolinians support tax cuts

Dec 212010

The Civitas Institute released a poll today showing North Carolinians are in favor of tax cuts to spur job growth by a large number. According to the live caller poll of 600 likely voters, 77 percent said they would support cutting taxes to encourage job creation even if it may require additional cuts in government spending in the short run. Nineteen percent of voters said they do not support cutting taxes.

“North Carolina voters’ support spurring job creation by cutting state taxes even if this requires more cuts to government services and spending,” said Civitas Institute Francis De Luca.

A poll questions that we would like them to ask is where, specifically, people would like to reduce spending in order to pay for tax cuts. Education? Health and human services?

December 21, 2010 Posted by Tim Long at 12:16 pm Raleigh No Responses »

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